Fourth Sunday of Easter
Year C
11 May 2025
INTRODUCTION
Good morning/evening. My name is ………. and I would like to wish you a warm welcome to our Mass at
Holy Spirit Church, Kurri Kurri/ St Joseph’s, Cessnock/ St Francis Xavier’s Abermain/ St Michael’s, Wollombi/
The priest celebrating with us today is Father James and Father Solomon and assisting him is Deacon Viane.
The image of the Good Shepherd, upon which this Sunday is centred, speaks to believers not only of the present consolation of being known and loved intimately by Christ, but also of the future hope of sharing in his resurrection. As the prayers of the liturgy so movingly put it, the Lord Jesus, who ‘laid down his life for his sheep and willingly died for the flock,’ has gone through the domain of death into indestructible new life, so that the ‘humble flock’ may reach where he, ‘the brave shepherd, has gone before’.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.
And with your spirit.
Brethren (brothers and sisters), let us acknowledge our sins,
and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries.
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
therefore,
I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of good will.
We praise you,
we bless you,
we adore you,
we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.
Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world,
receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father,
have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
Let us pray.
Almighty ever-living God,
lead us to a share in the joys of heaven,
so that the humble flock may reach
where the brave Shepherd has gone before.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Acts 13:14, 43-52
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles
We are now turning to the gentiles.
Paul and Barnabas carried on from Perga till they reached Antioch in Pisidia. Here they went to the synagogue on the sabbath and took their seats.
When the meeting broke up, many Jews and devout converts joined Paul and Barnabas, and in their talks with them Paul and Barnabas urged them to remain faithful to the grace God has given them.
The next sabbath almost the whole town assembled to hear the word of God. When they saw the crowds, the Jews, prompted by jealousy, used blasphemies and contradicted everything Paul said. Then Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly. 'We had to proclaim the word of God to you first, but since you have rejected it, since you do not think yourselves worthy of eternal life, we must turn to the pagans. For this is what the Lord commanded us to do when he said:
I have made you a light for the nations,
so that my salvation may reach the ends of the earth.'
It made the pagans very happy to hear this and they thanked the Lord for his message; all who were destined for eternal life became believers. Thus the word of the Lord spread through the whole countryside.
But the Jews worked upon some of the devout women of the upper classes and the leading men of the city and persuaded them to turn against Paul and Barnabas and expel them from their territory. So they shook the dust from their feet in defiance and went off to Iconium; but the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Ps 99:1-3, 5
R. We are his people, the sheep of his flock.
Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing for joy. R.
Know that he, the Lord, is God.
He made us, we belong to him,
we are his people, the sheep of his flock. R.
Indeed, how good is the Lord,
eternal his merciful love.
He is faithful from age to age. R.
Revelation 7:9, 14-17
A reading from the book of the Apocalypse
The Lamb who is at the throne will be their shepherd and will lead them to springs of living water.
I, John, saw a huge number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language; they were standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands. One of the elders said to me, 'These are the people who have been through the great persecution, and because they have washed their robes white again in the blood of the Lamb, they now stand in front of God's throne and serve him day and night in his sanctuary; and the One who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. They will never hunger or thirst again; neither the sun nor scorching wind will ever plague them, because the Lamb who is at the throne will be their shepherd and will lead them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away all tears from their eyes.'
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
John 10:14
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord;
I know my sheep, and mine know me.
Alleluia!
John 10:27-30
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
I give my sheep eternal life.
Jesus said:
'The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice;
I know them and they follow me.
I give them eternal life;
they will never be lost
and no one will ever steal them from me.
The Father who gave them to me is greater than anyone,
and no one can steal from the Father.
The Father and I are one.'
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
I believe in God,
the Father almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
At the words that follow, up to and including 'the Virgin Mary', all bow.
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;
he descended into hell;
on the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting. Amen.
Presider: Our loving God shepherds us with care and protection and so it is with confidence that we place these needs before God.
We pray for our Diocesan bishops, parish pastors and all Shepherds of the Church. May they reflect a father’s love and care for all whom they serve. (Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
For all mothers: that they may be blessed in their love and care for their families. May the Holy Spirit continue to guide them with wisdom and love.
(Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray our Lord will grant us a new Pope who will lead us to ever greater unity and love, that our Church may shine out as a sign of Christ’s love for the whole world to see. (Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray for leaders of the world's nations that they will shepherd their people with the justice and care that leads to peace and well-being.
(Extended pause) Lord hear us: All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray for mothers, grandmothers and all who serve in a maternal role, that their faith and love will bear fruit in the form of happy families and peaceful communities. (Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray for vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life; for seminarians preparing for the priesthood and for those in formation for consecrated life. (Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray for members of this parish, that we may shepherd others faithfully to the eternal life that Jesus offers everyone. (Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray for the dead, especially the priests who have served our parish and diocese, that they will join the hosts of heaven in praise of the Lamb.
(Extended pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
Presider: Loving God, you shepherd your people with unfailing care: hear these prayers that we present through our Good Shepherd and Saviour, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Placing of Flowers for Mother’s Day
THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Prayer over the Offerings
Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters), that my sacrifice and yours
may be acceptable to God,
the almighty Father.
May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands
for the praise and glory of his name,
for our good,
and the good of all his holy Church.
Grant, we pray, O Lord,
that we may always find delight in these paschal mysteries,
so that the renewal constantly at work within us
may be the cause of our unending joy.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right and just.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
at all times to acclaim you, O Lord,
but (on this night / on this day / in this time) above all
to laud you yet more gloriously,
when Christ our Passover has been sacrificed.
For he is the true Lamb
who has taken away the sins of the world;
by dying he has destroyed our death,
and by rising, restored our life.
Therefore, overcome with paschal joy,
every land, every people exults in your praise
and even the heavenly Powers, with the angelic hosts,
sing together the unending hymn of your glory,
as they acclaim:
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
We proclaim your Death, O Lord,
and profess your Resurrection
until you come again.
Let us pray.
Look upon your flock, kind Shepherd,
and be pleased to settle in eternal pastures
the sheep you have redeemed
by the Precious Blood of your Son.
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
A Blessing For Mothers
May the God of our mother
be your fountain of life to bless + you
and give you health and happiness,
so that you may be a blessing to your family
and to all who are in your care.
May Jesus, the Son of Mary, be your Protector
to give you strength and health and peace,
so that you may be a refuge and haven for your family.
May the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life,
shield you from all the powers of darkness
and give you joy in being a mother to your children.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen
Bow down for the blessing.
May God, who by the Resurrection of his Only Begotten Son
was pleased to confer on you
the gift of redemption and of adoption,
give you gladness by his blessing.
Amen.
May he, by whose redeeming work
you have received the gift of everlasting freedom,
make you heirs to an eternal inheritance.
Amen.
And may you, who have already risen with Christ
in Baptism through faith,
by living in a right manner on this earth,
be united with him in the homeland of heaven.
Amen.
And may the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, and the Son,+ and the Holy Spirit,
come down on you and remain with you for ever.
Amen.
Go forth, the Mass is ended.
Thanks be to God.
© The scriptural quotations are taken from the Jerusalem Bible, published and copyright 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton Longman and Todd Ltd and Doubleday & Co Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. The English translation of the Psalm Responses, the Alleluia and Gospel Verses, and the Lenten Gospel Acclamations, and the Titles, Summaries, and Conclusion of the Readings, from the Lectionary for Mass © 1997, 1981, 1968, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. The prayers are from the English Translation of the Roman Missal © 2010 International Committee on English in the Liturgy Inc. (ICEL). All rights reserved.